Highway 101 traffic congestion projects funding approved

The Daily Journal (San Mateo County), Samantha Weigel, 10/2/15. "Highway 101 projects get OK: San Mateo County Transportation Authority allocates $108 M in local sales tax money."

Traffic congestion Highway 101
SMCTA funded to get fixed

 "...  The San Mateo County Transportation Authority is allocating $108 million in local sales tax dollars toward projects aimed at alleviating commuters’ woes.  The authority is responsible for overseeing revenue from Measure A, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax originally passed in 1988 and reaffirmed in 2004; now it has about $125 million to improve conditions near Highway 101.  

The transportation tax brings in about $75 million a year, of which 27.5 percent or nearly $20 million is allocated toward highway projects, said April Chan, chief officer of planning and grants with the TA. For the first time in three years, the TA’s Board of Directors selected Thursday night projects sponsored by various cities and agencies to receive much-needed support. While the $108 million is a substantial commitment, infrastructure projects are costly and there’s a significant need throughout the county — the TA’s 10-year Capital Improvement Program dedicated solely to highways outlines $1.2 billion in projects, Chan said. 

 ....  “[Measure A] doesn’t provide sufficient funding. We generate about $75 million a year, so we work very closely with the cities and the county and the [Metropolitan Transportation Commission] to see how we can leverage our Measure A funding so we can do a lot more. Because highway projects are not cheap, so you have to work closely with others,” Chan said.   'And there’s so many areas where we need to make improvements both for congestion relief and safety improvements.' ”  Read article. 

Traffic congestion Highway 1
plagued by lawsuits not to fix

Related article - Daily Journal (San Mateo County), Samantha Weigel, 3/7/15. "Caltrans and San Mateo address dangerous merge: State Route 92 and El Camino Real interchange project moves ahead." "The current full cloverleaf layout was designed more than 50 years ago and provides short weaving distances where drivers must compete to exit and enter the freeway. The configuration also forces drivers to merge onto El Camino Real with wait times frequently causing cars to back up the length of the ramp and spill over onto State Route 92. ....“Our overall project goal is to reduce traffic congestion and to improve bicyclist and pedestrian travel,” Navarro wrote. “The commitment and interest of Caltrans and the local agencies are to improve the performance at the on- and off-ramps that is creating deficiencies at the [State Route] 92 mainline.”  The Daily Journal (San Mateo County), Samantha Weigel, 5/9/15, "Is metering helping?:  San Mateo's Poplar, 101 intersection remains problematic." "As traffic congestion becomes an increasing headache for anyone driving on Highway 101 during rush hour, Caltrans has implemented metering lights at all San Mateo County southbound ramps north of State Route 92 in an attempt to ease flow and promote safer merging.  Yet the lights, which took effect this week, are doing little to improve San Mateo’s already problematic intersection at Poplar Avenue and the freeway — a long-standing trouble spot that’s slated for improvements next year. In fact, some fear the new lights are making the intersection worse."

Related government agency -  San Mateo County Transportation Authority.  Note: list of  "Current Projects" includes Route 1 Calera Parkway:  "The purpose of the proposed project is to reduce congestion on a segment of Route 1 in Pacifica."

Note photographs.  Highway 101 southbound intersection north of Route 92 by Nick Rose from the related Daily Journal 5/9/15 article (above).  Pacifica Highway 1 traffic congestion by Brendan P. Bartholomew from San Francisco Examiner, 5/11/14.

Posted by Kathy Meeh